[Malaysia] Commercial Replanting Farms To Alleviate Poverty Among Orang Asli

from Bernama

The Rural and Regional Development Ministry plans to open 91 commercial replanting (TSK) smallholdings covering a total of 12,000 hectares nationwide to alleviate hardcore poverty among the Orang Asli.

Deputy Minister Datuk Zainal Abidin Osman said oil palm and rubber would be cultivated on the land to help the Orang Asli venture into commercial farming.

He said the project, to be carried out in collaboration with other agencies under the ministry like Risda and Felcra, would also involve providing new settlements for the Orang Asli.

Speaking to reporters after a visit to a Risda project in Kampung Batu Sawah and presenting TSK dividends of RM700 each to 103 participants here Tuesday, he said the ministry had opened 167 TSK schemes.

According to statistics, Zainal Abidin said, there were 12,912 Orang Asli hardcore poor families and 24,695 families living below the poverty line from among than 149,000 Orang Asli in the country.

He said courses and training would continue to be conducted for the Orang Asli to provide them with the necessary knowledge and skills to enable them to venture into the agriculture sector.

He said efforts were also made to make the Orang Asli realise the importance of education if they were to get out of poverty.